Blog | Language, Learning and Culture

Happy Emoji Day

Believe it or not, there is an Unofficial International Emoji Day - and it is today! Pepsi, Coca-Cola, Disney, Google, General Electric, and Twitter are all marking the occasion by launching their own, temporary emojis.

The internet is full of emojis, with seemingly limitless interpretations. Indeed, from John Oliver ("eggplant emoji") to most Facebook profiles, the little icons have proven surprisingly flexible. Emojis have even spurred debate about language, as many interpretations are based on the country from which the reader originates.

It is particularly fitting, considering the "Kanji" Japanese pictographic writing system Kanji, that "emoji" comes from the Japanese 絵 ("e" or "picture") and 文字 ("moji" or "character"). Since it sounded appropriately similar to "e-mail," the term stuck. These images were first seen on Japanese mobile phones in the late 1990s, and were later introduced worldwide with the launch of Apple’s first iPhone.

Although we all use emoji in mobile communications, some emoji are straight from Japanese culture; like the bowing businessman (🙇).

Even though the Japanese came up with the first emoji, their government is now presented with having to rethink street sign symbols for the 2020 Summer Olympics. They want to ensure that visitors don’t continue confuse their "onsen" (♨️ or "hot springs") with hot food. This sign can be seen all over the island nation as a way to direct people to the springs.